Rheinau
Kloster
Building data
Denomination | Secular
Building type | Monastery
Year of construction | 1730 – 1740
Architect | not specified
Town, canton | Rheinau, ZH
Street address | Klosterinsel
GPS | 47.642231, 8.608497
Google Maps | Swisstopo
Reuse
Year of reuse | 2014
Ownership | Foundation
Building interventions | Transformation
Form of use | Third-party use
Type of use | Culture
Brief information | In 1862, the monastery was dissolved; in 2000, the psychiatric clinic closed; since 2014, the former convent buildings have housed a music centre and a hotel.
Further information | see below
Status of information
Entry created | 2017/08
Entry last updated | 2017/08
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Further information
The monastery, a Carolingian foundation first mentioned in 844, was a Benedictine monastery until 1862. Following conversion work, the monastery buildings housed the cantonal psychiatric clinic from 1867 to 2000. The Canton of Zurich owns the buildings situated on the monastery island of Rheinau. Since 1998, the former monastery outbuildings on Klosterplatz, the ‘guest house’, the stables, the monastery barn, the cellars and the residential houses have been leased to the Fintan Foundation, which runs them through a variety of its own activities. In 2003, the tradition of monastic life was revived with the arrival of the sisters of the ‘Spiritual Community’ in the House of Silence. The monastery church is used by the Catholic parish of Rheinau for Masses, whilst the Chapel of St Mary Magdalene, situated in the east of the island, is used equally by the Catholic and Reformed parishes. In 2014, the ‘Musikinsel Rheinau’ was inaugurated in part of the former monastery. It is managed by the ‘Swiss Music Island of Rheinau’ Foundation, which has a capital of 20 million francs. The Music Island offers 16 rehearsal rooms, an orchestra foyer and a hotel with 63 rooms and 130 beds. A history museum is currently being in the abbey building. This project is being carried out by the ‘Rheinau Museum’ consortium in collaboration with cantonal authorities and specialist organisations.